Across the U.S., operators hope to schuss into a better year

1:00 PM,
Nov. 29, 2012

Vail's 50th anniversary is Dec. 15. Here, a skier gets air during a recent descent at the Colorado resort.

Written by

Laura Bly
USA Today

Hurricane Sandy may have created misery for millions of sodden East Coasters, but a blanket of white from the Halloween storm was a welcome side effect at U.S. ski resorts hoping for a rebound from last year's paltry snowfall and unusually warm temperatures.

The $6-billion-a-year ski resort business logged its worst season in two decades last winter, with a 15 percent drop in skier and snowboarder visits and the lowest national average snowfall since the early 1990s, according to a survey by the Lakewood, Colo.-based National Ski Areas Association.